Man reportedly shoots cousin fatally while playing with rifle — police

AMMAN — Police have arrested a 19-year-old man suspected of fatally shooting his cousin “by mistake” in Madaba, Public Security Department Spokesperson Lt. Col. Amer Sartawi said on Saturday. 

The suspect had invited his 20-year-old cousin to lunch and was playing with his pump action rifle when a bullet was accidentally fired, striking the victim in the eye in Mleih town on Friday, Sartawi told The Jordan Times.

“It seems from an initial investigation that the safety pin was not on when the shooting incident occurred,” he said.

The victim was rushed to a nearby hospital but was declared dead on arrival, Sartawi added.

A post-mortem conducted by Pathologist Isssa Gheishan, indicated that the victim died from severe brain haemorrhage, a medical source said.

“The bullet penetrated the victim’s eye and destroyed his brain,” Gheishan told The Jordan Times.

The Criminal Court prosecutor is questioning the suspect and other witnesses to determine what charge will be brought against the suspect, a judicial source said.

Also on Friday, a 27-year-old man died from stab wounds he sustained a day earlier during a brawl with another man in the Jordan Valley, Sartawi said.

The two men were fighting in the street when the suspect pulled a knife and stabbed the victim repeatedly, according to Sartawi.

“The victim was rushed to a nearby hospital but succumbed to his wounds on Friday,” the police official added.

The suspect is in police custody pending further investigation, the official said, adding that the cause of the fight “is still not clear”.